Interview help

[BrutalB83]

Wouldn't you want to say "obtain" on the resume instead of "retain"? Obtain means to get, retain means to keep. You can also just remove that section altogether since most likely you'll be stating it in your cover letter anyway.

I also agree that you could chop it down to one page. I'll post up mine later so you can check it out...

EDIT: 95b16coupe beat me to it on the cover letter suggestion...

 

[95b16coupe]

i altered a few things. check attachment

 

[GSRCRXsi]

ok that does simplify it a bit. would you recommend taking a shortened version like that? or the original that they already have? someone said not to change it.

and yes, i chose retain on purpose. i want to keep the job, not just get it.

 

[95b16coupe]

dont' change it. just take a couple extra copies. 2-3 should be fine.

edit: you could shorten it down and have an "interview resume that has been shortened for readability"

 

[Briansol]

Simply put, your resume sucks. lol I'm shocked you got an interview. That means they are probably hurting or need some noobs to pay on the cheap who will work hard for lame pay to get their 'in'. Know this walking in the door.

Since you have zero professional experience in this field, your resume should be straight academic. No one gives a fuck that you worked at best buy or any other 'college job'.... unless you want to be a PC technician, which isn't what you're applying for.


remove the date of graduation. There's laws against age stuff and it shows you're young.

I find it really hard to believe that after 4 years of school you only have 2 relevant classes to the job you're applying for.


Show me
a) what you know
b) what you've done
c) what you will do for me to make my product successful/me rich
d) show some leg
e) get the job

 

[BrutalB83]

and yes, i chose retain on purpose. i want to keep the job, not just get it.

Gotcha. I guess that makes sense. It just seems a bit odd, since you first have to get a job in order to retain one. I probably would have gone with something like:

Objective: Secure an entry level position in blah-blah-blah field

EDIT: And just to let you know, I definitely don't think it's an awful resume. It could use a little polishing, but I've seen much worse. For future interviews though, I really do recommend the one-pager. As the other guys said, most HR people and managers don't really spend a lot of time reviewing resumes, so something that's short, sweet, and to the point is best. If they have to flip a page or turn it over to read all of it, then most likely the info on the second page probably isn't going to get much attention, so best to just have a one-page "highlights" type presentation.

Also, I don't know what you're doing about references, but you may want to include a short "References available upon request" note at the bottom. It's pretty rare that somebody will get a resume in and immediately pick up the phone and start calling your references right off the bat, so best to take a reference sheet with you when you go to the interview and supply it if they ask for it.

 

[95b16coupe]

resumes are show me or blow me. lol

show me what you can do or blow me to get the job.

just be happy you got the interview. if you dont' like the job, the company or the pay, don't take it.

 

[phunky.buddha]

All good advice. Honestly, partially agree with B's first statement too.

Do NOT remove the graduation date. Do NOT remove the college work experience. You're too fresh out of school to get rid of it- without it, you have a blank resume. Work experience in any field shows that you were able to manage responsibility and goals outside of school, even if you were delivering pizzas.

I would use obtain instead of retain if you kept the objective statement, but I would reword it to be quite a bit more active and specific to the interview you're going to.

The copy of the resume that your interviewer will have is probably a badly scanned version. Taking another one for him/her to look at is always a good idea. As others have said though, what's on it isn't nearly as important as how you do in the interview. Concentrate on that- they've already read your resume.

When I interview people, I look at the resume for the first minute or two to get an idea of what the person has done before, and look for interesting points or immediate red flags. After that, I set it down and rarely look at it again. If the candidate fails to engage me in conversation sufficient to show me everything I want to know and I start going through the resume for material, the interview has already failed.

Specific numbered targets and accomplishments are a very good thing to have. I'll email you a copy of my last resume so you can check it out.

 

[phunky.buddha]

Oh, get rid of the relevant classes part. Every school has different naming structures for their classes- the interviewer doesn't know what they all are. You have an engineering degree from an accredited university, so you should have everything they need already. I always think the relevant classes portion of the resume is totally useless and a waste of space... unless it's someone applying for an internship or coop, but then those positions are usually built so that anyone that can handle a project can do them without a full degree's worth of knowledge.

 

[Briansol]

Yup, if i can't have a conversation with you after a couple basic questions based on the resume, i'm bored talking to you and you're done. i'll finish as polite as possible, but you won't be getting a call.

Bring it on. Don't be afraid to ask about everything. sound interested. ask what the role is, day to day duties, who you report to, the current team/etc you'll potentially be joining, etc etc. They have to sell YOU the job at the same time you sell yourself to them.

 

[phunky.buddha]

Yup.

 

[GSRCRXsi]

yea honestly the only reason i kept pizza hut on there was to show that i worked while in school. i know its not an important job.

and of course there are more relevant courses, but i dont want to clutter up the resume with my curriculum lol. i was told that if i put them in there, to give maybe 2-3 with explanations of them.

obviously after i get experience in my feild with my first job, that stuff will come off the resume.

 

[95b16coupe]

hell, you can even ask to meet the people you will be working with. assuming its not a multi day interview process.

 

[GSRCRXsi]

Yup, if i can't have a conversation with you after a couple basic questions based on the resume, i'm bored talking to you and you're done. i'll finish as polite as possible, but you won't be getting a call.

Bring it on. Don't be afraid to ask about everything. sound interested. ask what the role is, day to day duties, who you report to, the current team/etc you'll potentially be joining, etc etc. They have to sell YOU the job at the same time you sell yourself to them.

from what the interviewer has told me (the person ive been speaking to gave me the impression that she will be doing the interview) that after the interview she plans to give me a tour of the facility. so im sure ill get a good idea of the day to day.

 

[Briansol]

At this point, you've landed the interview so arguing your resume is a moot point at this stage. It's all oral from this point on. sell it.

watch some infomercials.
how do they get you to buy a towel for $20?
how do you get them to hire you for $200k

 

[BrutalB83]

and of course there are more relevant courses, but i dont want to clutter up the resume with my curriculum lol. i was told that if i put them in there, to give maybe 2-3 with explanations of them.

Generally I would agree that listing relevant coursework really isn't necessary, but in this case I think it's alright because you're showing that you've worked on and successfully completed projects that are relevant to the job you're trying to get...

 

[Briansol]

from what the interviewer has told me (the person ive been speaking to gave me the impression that she will be doing the interview) that after the interview she plans to give me a tour of the facility. so im sure ill get a good idea of the day to day.

FAIL! the campus tour is too late. You've already HAD your interview. Ask your questions before hand, and when you GET there, you can interject "ah, this is so and so that you were talking about..."

 

[95b16coupe]

FAIL! the campus tour is too late. You've already HAD your interview. Ask your questions before hand, and when you GET there, you can interject "ah, this is so and so that you were talking about..."

the interview will dictate how the tour goes. if it's bad, they show you the offices and bathrooms.

if it goes good, they will introduce you to people.

get ALL of the talking done before you get the tour. let them know you are serious about the job. if you don't like it, don't even waste time with the tour.

 

[95b16coupe]

Gotcha. I guess that makes sense. It just seems a bit odd, since you first have to get a job in order to retain one. I probably would have gone with something like:

Objective: Secure an entry level position in blah-blah-blah field

EDIT: And just to let you know, I definitely don't think it's an awful resume. It could use a little polishing, but I've seen much worse. For future interviews though, I really do recommend the one-pager. As the other guys said, most HR people and managers don't really spend a lot of time reviewing resumes, so something that's short, sweet, and to the point is best. If they have to flip a page or turn it over to read all of it, then most likely the info on the second page probably isn't going to get much attention, so best to just have a one-page "highlights" type presentation.

Also, I don't know what you're doing about references, but you may want to include a short "References available upon request" note at the bottom. It's pretty rare that somebody will get a resume in and immediately pick up the phone and start calling your references right off the bat, so best to take a reference sheet with you when you go to the interview and supply it if they ask for it.

i added an updated version of the resume. i cut it to one page.

i agree with brutal but forgot to add it to the resume. "references" should be in one line across the bottom. centered with a smaller font than the resume print.

 

[phunky.buddha]

Disagree- leave the "reference available on request" off of there. It's obvious. They're asking the questions. If they want references, they'll ask. I get pissed off when I see that line at the bottom.

Take the reference sheet with you if you want, but I doubt you'll need it. If you're interviewing for any kind of sensitive work, you'll have a MUCH more thorough background investigation than a single sheet of references that YOU define will satisfy anyway.

You don't need to put obvious/redundant stuff on the resume. That's why the course history doesn't matter once you have the degree- all accredited engineering degrees HAVE to cover ABET's approved curriculum. If you have a significant project, list it as a separate line like your work experience and detail WHY it's important.